Hyde Farmhouse

Hyde Farmhouse

Farmhouse dating from the late 13th or early 14th century, with major remodelling in the late Middle Ages, mid 16th century, and mid 17th century. Built in limestone rubble with a stone tile roof (plain tiles in the higher courses), hipped at the left end and gabled at the rear wing. Stone axial and gable end stacks with brick shafts.

The original medieval structure comprised a long open hall of three bays divided from a service bay at the south end, probably also open to the roof. Later in the Middle Ages, the high north end bay of the hall was partitioned from the remainder while retaining its open roof. This north bay was subsequently floored, probably before the centre bay was floored around the mid 16th century, leaving the south bay open as a smoke bay. A chimney was inserted around 1600, creating a cross-passage on its lower south side. The south service bay was floored probably in the 17th century. A wing on the east side of the north bay dates from around the mid 16th century and is timber-framed with one room and a cross-passage adjacent to the main range. This wing was extended in 1652 by John Prince, who built a parlour with a chamber above.

The exterior presents two storeys with an asymmetrical four-window west front. It features various three and four-light 17th and 18th-century casement windows with leaded panes. The five-light hall window to the left of centre and the three-light window above the eaves have ovolo-moulded mullions and frames. A doorway to the right of centre has a late medieval chamfered and shouldered wooden frame with a chambered head and later plank door. At the rear, east side, there are outshuts in the angle with the wing. The wing is timber-framed with brick infill and extended in stone rubble with ovolo-moulded wooden mullion windows with leaded panes; the first floor window on the south side was replaced in the 20th century, and its 1556 dated internal cill was removed.

The interior is little altered and retains many 17th-century and earlier features. There are 17th-century plank doors, panelled cupboard doors, and stone flag floors. The cross-passage has unchamfered joists and a stud partition to the service side. The service room has a roughly chamfered cross-beam with diagonal stops and unchamfered joists. The hall has a high ceiling with a chamfered cross-beam and broad joists all with hollow step stops, and a large fireplace with a lightly chamfered cambered timber lintel, oven, and gun-rack above. The inner north room has a low ceiling with a roughly chamfered axial beam without stops and unchamfered joists. The parlour in the rear wing has a chamfered axial beam with bar stops, a wide fireplace with a low chamfered lintel, and plasterwork above dated 1652 with initials P/IM. The chamber above has similar plasterwork fireplace overmantel and exposed timber-framing of the earlier bay of the wing, which has jowled storey-posts and a cambered tie-beam. The inner room chamber has exposed smoke-blackening above the tie-beam in the partition. The chamber over the cross-passage has a small fireplace with a cambered lintel and a staircase rising from the hall with splat balusters.

The medieval four-bay roof survives largely intact. The two north trusses of the long three-bay open hall have pairs of parallel rafters, the inner rafters rising to a collar and the outer rising to the ridge, which is square-set on a small yoke. There are two tiers of purlins, the upper one trenched and the lower trapped between the parallel rafters, with wind-braces from the inner rafter to the upper purlin. Some original common rafters survive. The three north bays are smoke-blackened, and the lower end south truss is an open timber-framed partition with studding, clasped purlins, and a similar yoke and ridge. The principals of the south end truss survive in the gable-end wall. The roof of the north bay has been partly rebuilt with a hip. The rear wing has a clasped-purlin roof.